Author HelenKay Dimon is our next cupid. You know HKD – fun dialog in her books and on her blog, lawyer, wife, chief bottle washer? The woman has some serious skills. Plus, she based a book in a believable Hawaii – I so want to go there – where she is until Sunday (wench – I’m not jealous – I’m JEALOUS).
Don’t forget to pick up a copy of her latest, Right Here, Right Now, releasing 26 Feb 08 from Brava. (We’ll have a review posted later this month.) It’s full of her trademark dialog, hot scenes, and all-around good writing.
Valentine’s Day is the perfect time to remember the romantic way in which I got engaged. I like to think of it as: The Day My Hubby 
Proved How Patient He Is. He likes to think of it as: The Day I Almost Threw A Diamond Ring At HelenKay. Sounds nice, doesn’t it?
It started out lovely enough. We were in Hawaii over Christmas. My husband is from there, so a visit to Hawaii is a visit home [and now you see one of the reasons why I said yes when he proposed]. Problem is that the minute I stepped off the plane on Honolulu, I got the flu. Not a cold. Oh, no. I got the pray-for-death type of flu.
Poor James [the hubby]. He had all kinds of plans. We had tickets to see Tony Bennett on New Year’s Eve. After days of whining and barely moving, I went but was too tired and too sick to do much of anything else, so we came home right after. Finally, on the last night before we were set to go back home, I felt better. My idea: let’s go to the Barnes & Noble to get a book for the plane. His idea: drag HelenKay to the beach and propose. In my defense, I didn’t know his intentions.
Since I am married, you probably know how this ends. I went [grumbling] to the beach bar, was so out of it that I did not notice the ring when my hubby put it in front of me but somehow got a clue and said yes. Not my finest moment [or week], but it was one of my husband’s best.
Happy Valentine’s Day to all!
HelenKay Dimon
So, readers, I KNOW some of you have amusing proposal stories. Please share it so we can giggle, chuckle, and/or groan along with you.
Plus, if you comment here with your story, you may win the copy of Right Here, Right Now that’s being given away to a random post commenter.
Single right now, so I don’t have a story to share. However, I want to wish you ALL a great Valentine’s Day! Go forth and rock the house with your writing, ladies!
And thank you, Sybil and company for hosting the Valenduckies–it’s been so much fun!
I have been a single like forever and so I unfortunately don’t have a story to tell not even a Valentine story. Happy Valentine’s day
I’m single too so not proposal stories from me! But happy valentine’s day. 🙂
What I remember is that my guy knew he was very likely moving out of town for his career, possibly to the other end of the country, and he knew I shouldn’t/my parents wouldn’t approve of me going with him unless we were (getting) married. So it was a pretty regular dinner at our apartment but he was unusually quiet and “polite” as we sat down to start. He said/did the proposal thing, then we ate (quite happily, I’m sure). Afterwards as we were laughing and wrestling on the couch, my jaw got smacked and I almost bit my tongue off. Hmmm, that could’ve made it hard to tell my parents the news! Is that amusingly dangerous or dangerously amusing? Or neither? But there’s my little story.
Another single with no proposal stories. Happy Valentine’s Day
I had to laugh at your story. My then boyfriend and I were travelling together and he wanted to hike up a small mountain/large hill. I was not so inclined. It was the middle of winter, incredibly icy, and I only had sneakers with me. He was determined and I didn’t want to ruin his day so finally agreed and made a laborious trek. At the top as we were admiring the panoramic view of the mountains, he dropped to one knee and proposed. I was in shock but said yes. He then commenced to pull from his backpack, a bottle of champagne, a couple of small drinking cups, baguette, pate, brie and mandarin oranges for a celebratory picnic. 🙂
This was a lovely story, HelenKay. I mean, lovely for him – for you, yeah awful to be sick.
My husband proposed to me in a restaurant – got down on both knees – the works. The couple at the table next were both divorced and dating. They wished us luck, and then proceeded to share with us their marriage nightmares.
It took us two years, but we still got married.
I was struggling on my own and my now husband wanted to take me out to dinner at a really fancy restaurant. I didn’t have an outfit dressy enough and no money so I wanted to go to Taco Bell. He insisted we go and I was so mad! I obviously didn’t know that he was going to propose and the fact that he went thru with it told me he had guts!
When my late husband proposed it was not as romantic as some. We were talking about holidays and he said how about going on holiday on the end of June, and I said I can’t get holidays then because I don’t have senority at the office. He said well if it was your honeymoon – you would be able to get the time then right? I said well yeah it would guarantee me the time off – ummmmm just what are you saying here? LoL so not the most romantic – but a proposal all the same………
Possibly because he knew I have a low boredom-threshold and am a sucker for creative approaches to practically anything, possibly because we were both starving students, my then-boyfriend decided against the usual and expensive ring-offering method and did something different. He created a fantastic, abstract, symmetrical painting and presented it to me one dark and dreary winter day. Impressed, I asked what it meant, and he explained that it was the way he saw us – different but equal,separate but facing one another. For always.
It did the trick, I said yes, next week we’re celebrating our 20th anniversary. Here’s the funny part: in all those years since, he hasn’t created one single additional painting. Nada. He just laughs when I point out that it was false advertising…
I’m another single, so I have no proposal stories either. Hope everyone has an awesome Valentine’s Day!
HelenKay, that is the cutest story! It definitely made me smile – and hey, at least you’re both sure to always remember it, right? 😉
Happy Valentine’s Day. Another single person here. Don’t have any proposal stories to share.
LOL!! My proposal, while a big surprise since we had been living together for 5 years, is not amusing.. my wedding story is pretty funny. Although not at the time. I was so nervous, I got deathly ill. I’m talking hanging over the porcelain bus with a bridesmaid trying to cover the dress sick. I swear I thought the pastor was going to have to perform the ceremony standing between the sink and the shower. And feeding of the cake and drinking of the toast? Fuggedaboudit. 😛
There were some pretty amusing photos, though.
But the DH did propose on Valentines Day..20 years ago. 🙂
I’m also single. But wanted to say Happy Valentine’s Day to everyone!
Love the proposal stories! Does it ever go the way anyone plans? After eight years of dating, my husband got down on one knee and proposed to me in the driveway at my parents’ house. Not the ideal romantic setting, but it worked!
My husband proposed to me on Valentine’s Day 13 years ago. He and a friend made dinner for me and his friend’s fiancee. After dinner he got down on one knee and proposed. Since his friend was aware it was coming, he took pictures. It’s so nice to have pictures of him asking me.
My husband didn’t officially propose but asked if I wanted to get married someday but not for a while.
My DH knew that I loved the beach and that I thought the whole beach/water/sunset thing extremely romantic. So because he proposed at the beginning of March when the beaches were pretty cold, dreary, and unromantic, he went and got a palm-like tree, a CD of waves and other beach sounds, and picnic stuff. He picked me up at the airport as I got back from a business trip with a dozen roses, and brought me back to his place for an indoor picnic. He tucked the ring into one of the “dessert” containers, and boy, was I surprised! But my most favorite part of the whole thing was a journal that he’d kept of our relationship until that day–I still treasure that 🙂
single here
but i like watching proposals on tv and at sporting events. i have seen 2 no answers too, and feel bad for the man.
I also have single all my life and haven’t dated, so I really don’t have any stories to share. But I enjoyed reading some of the proposal stories.
Nothing out of the ordinary here. Flowers delivered to my office from my boyfriend (now husband of almost 40 years.) But it was such a nice surprise to see the delivery guy come and realize the bouquet was for me. Hope you all had a great Val. Day.
Duh, I forgot to tell my proposal brain was on Val Day – My husband took me to the beach and we were in parking lot and he asked me to get something out of the glove compartment and there was the proverbial “black box”.
It was many, many years ago. But I met my husband at the Empire State Bldg. in NY where we both worked. And that is where he proposed. Nothing quirky, funny or out of the ordinary. He has long since passed away but we had many wonderful years together.
Single here. No story for me. Happy Late Valentine’s day
My husband took me to Americas, a lovely restaurant in Union Station, Washington, DC. They have an area where you can go upstairs and view the center hall from a balcony. If you’ve ever been to Union Station, you know that this hall is circled by statues of Trojan men bearing shields in front of them. There’s a local legend that the Trojans are anatomically correct behind those shields. So, of course, giddy me has to take a look. I’m leaning out over the balcony, trying to see if a statue has gonads, when my beloved clears his throat behind me. I turned around to find him on his knee, ring in hand.
Been married 15 years this September. Still couldn’t tell you what’s behind the Trojan’s shield…
Well, I don’t have a good proposal story, because I’m not engaged yet….but I did have a wonderful Valentine’s Day this year. My boyfriend went all out from roses to a beautiful dinner and an extravagant gift. A great night out on the town. He was the perfect gentleman and made me feel so special! Like a princess!
it was a blind date!!!! and it did work out! two years later we married and have been for 40 years!!!!
My husband wanted to go out to dinner that night (9/25/90), but I threw a monkey wrench into his plans. I was tired when I got home from work and had laundry to do, of course not knowing what he had in mind. My husband was like a little kid. He couldn’t wait to give it to me, so he proposed to me right then and there, in the apartment. That is what I get. The moral of the story is, go along with the flow. We’ve been married 16 happy years, Oct. 19, 1991.
Proposal #1 – I was in my second year of college. He had already graduated. It was in a local restaurant and, while sweet, wasn’t very romantic. The engagement lasted six months, I think. Too young.
Proposal #2 – He was drunk and I wasn’t. While he was serious, I knew better. No romance – no marriage either. Still too young.
Proposal #3 – We had been living together for almost a year. He did it in the living room and did the one-knee thing. When he teared-up, of course I teared-up. It was a lovely moment, made even lovlier by the gorgeous 1.5c solitaire. I still have the ring, but not the husband.
Here’s hoping that Proposal #4 is the memorable one.
Hope I am not too late….
We are married over 2 years now and got engaged in the park where we always went for walks. Knew something was up when he was anxious about purchasing a new camera coupled with the fact that I found a jewelry receipt in the desk.
My husband proposed to me on my birthday which is New Year’s Eve. We were at a bash at a fancy restaurant that had a fabulous dinner, open bar, a live band, and dancing. He had the band play “Happy Birthday” then he proposed out on the dancing floor. The band played “I only have eyes for you”. We made that our first song to dance to at our wedding reception. My hubby is such a romantic! He is my sizzling hot Italian lover!
He proposed by having a plane fly overhead asking me to marry him at the beach.
It was many, many years ago during wartime. My then boyfriend got a 4 day pass and we just decided to get married on that pass. That happened a lot back then. You never knew if your special someone would be coming home.